


At that end of the airbridge

by Mielst



Category: Borderlands (Video Games)
Genre: Airplane, M/M, Modern AU, rhysothy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-03
Updated: 2018-05-03
Packaged: 2019-05-01 13:46:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,437
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14521884
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mielst/pseuds/Mielst
Summary: "Anyways," Rhys continued, leaning a bit towards the man, "what name do you go by, Mister I-will-hold-this-book-like-my-life-depends-on-it?"The stranger raised his brow, still looking at the book. "At least this book won't start giving me rude comments about my behaviour,-" the man turned his head and locked eyes with Rhys "-Mister I-know-best."Rhys has a headache and Tim is afraid of flights.





	At that end of the airbridge

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! I wrote a thing. Hope you enjoy it! :D

Dubai International Airport was as busy as it could be. The huge place which is able to contain millions of people every day is truly astonishing - too astonishing, perhaps. Definitely over the board for Rhys, a young CEO of a young company. The lithe fair-skinned brown-haired man in expensive clothing didn't know why the universe hated him so much. Of course, he knew that branching his company overseas is bound to be a difficult task, but his charm usually got him what he wants. This time, though, Rhys wasn't completely satisfied, to put it lightly. And all that noise and movement from people around him didn't make his life any easier.

The young man thought that after he's done so much in this week he deserves at least some rest. He was thankful that at least the customs were behind him, but his head still felt as if it was being crushed against hard rock every few minutes - god, will this pain ever stop? - and between those pulses reality seemed to blur, thoughts mixing with each other. Rhys even wondered if he was asleep because the surroundings were becoming less and less real with every second. After staring - no, glaring - at the flight information screen for nearly half an hour, it occurred to the company man that trying to wait out the pain isn't going work. He still had about two hours before the boarding starts, so what the hell is he going to do with all that time? Sure, at the hotel, while Rhys was waiting for a taxi, he thought he'd like to spend extra time and cash in duty-free area, but now? All he wanted to do was to fall asleep so the pain would stop already.

He got up from his seat eventually.

Concourse C, where Rhys was currently battling his headache, had a lot to offer. More than ten cafes, large shopping area, but all of it didn't appeal to Rhys' current state of mind. He thought of going to a pharmacy to buy some painkillers but ultimately threw that thought to garbage. He'd only get more pain if he started to use drugs he wasn't used to. It was already a pain just to think about side effects and would be much more experiencing it. But while those thoughts were coming up in his foggy mind, Rhys realised he already walked up to the pharmacy. Damn it. The man looked around. Lots of different people going in different directions. A flight info screen nearby. A little more than an hour and a half left. Rhys heavily sighed, which unfortunately only made his head throb more - ugh, stop, please. He thought about going back to his not very comfortable, but already familiar seat in the waiting area, as he noticed a light of hope. To the right from the pharmacy found its place a little bookstore. It wasn't too crowded, which was a good enough reason to walk in.

The place was kind of cosy. Little bookshelves and magazine stands were placed along the walls. Some stands were in the middle of the small space. Few people were quietly weighing their reading options. Rhys looked at the fresh Forbes magazine. It featured some ridiculous news about Dahl company presumably digging the moon. Rhys snorted at the thought - ouch, ouch, head. He resigned with a small chuckle. Someday, his own company Atlas would get the best articles in the most popular magazines. Ugh, that made him remember the events of the past week. Hopefully, everything will work out. No, it'll definitely work out. The other side did sign the contract, after all. Maybe not on conditions Rhys expected them to, but he had them in his pocket now. It didn't matter much anyway, the important part was just to start international sales already. Yeah. Alright. _Alright_.

Now that his mind was set on the positive, the pain didn't bother Rhys as much as before. It still was there, but somewhere in the background of his flashing work goals. That made him able to actually notice things around him, once he came back to the airport from an interview he was already giving to some famous journalist in his head. That's when he saw one of the few customers at the shop acting rather weird. The customer was a man with olive skin and chestnut hair, almost as tall as Rhys, though he had broader shoulders. He was clutching on a book with both hands so hard his knuckles went white. His stare was blank as if he was looking at something far away, his shoulders tense and his jaw clenched. Rhys couldn't decide if the overall look was intimidating or pathetic. After looking at the other man for some time and seeing that he didn't change his pose, Rhys thought that the stranger, perhaps, needed some help.

The young man in expensive clothing moved carefully towards the slightly older man in a yellow sweater with a little cat embroidery on it. "Hey there, buddy! What is that book you're holding?" The stranger almost jumped at the sound of Rhys' voice. He looked up at Rhys as if he was a teenager caught engaging in bad habits in front of his parents. Such an active reaction made Rhys' head hurt quite a bit, he hissed and placed his hand on the forehead rather dramatically. Such display made the other man fret even more.

Stranger cleared his throat, trying to get himself together. "Um, d-did you ask me something?" The stranger's voice was strained. Rhys slowly opened his eyes, recovering from the sharp sting in his brains. The stranger looked on the floor, trying to avert Rhys' gaze.

"Yeah, it was one of those stupid questions that are technically just conversation starters."

The stranger looked up at the man before him. "Oh, okay? Um, so. Hello." He waved his hand as a greeting.

Rhys was already regretting trying to engage in social activities. Especially with that excuse for a human being. "Yeah, you don't have to greet me, we're already talking." He said harshly, annoyance showing in his voice, as he pulled a sarcastic fake-smile on his face. Stranger frowned at this and turned his attention to the book cover. "Anyways," Rhys continued, leaning a bit towards the man, "what name do you go by, Mister I-will-hold-this-book-like-my-life-depends-on-it?"

The stranger raised his brow, still looking at the book. "At least this book won't start giving me rude comments about my behaviour,-" the man turned his head and locked eyes with Rhys "-Mister _I-know-best_."

"How nice of you to notice. I really do know best!" Stranger rolled his eyes and put the book back on the shelf. He then turned around and walked away.

Well, that went _fine_. Rhys put his hands in his pockets. He almost started to pout - but contained himself, thankfully. Rhys didn't really like to be dismissed like this. That reminded him of his days back when he was just a worm in a huge corporation, full to the top with the same wiggling worms. How could this man treat Rhys like that? "I'm a Big Fish now. I eat worms for breakfast." Rhys muttered to himself, as he too turned on his heels and marched out of the bookshop.

* * *

 

Finally, finally-finally! It was the time to board the airplane. After leaving the bookstore Rhys actually took a shot at the painkillers. No side effects were noticed, at least during the boarding. Rhys felt light and almost chirped with joy like a little bird. He took his seat in the middle row. The painless experience gave Rhys a smug grin, he even murmured some song under his breath. But it seemed that the luck still wasn't on Rhys' side, as the rude stranger from before sat next to him.

Rhys examined him for a bit, until snorting: "Ha! Looks like fate itself tries to bring us together", with the grin not leaving his face. The stranger looked to his side, away from Rhys. He persisted: "You never answered my question. What's your name?"

The stranger looked askance "I thought you already figured it out." He said plainly.

Rhys' smile faded "Oh, come on, I was just messing with you." He waited for the stranger's reaction. After he was met with silence, he said: "Let me start. I'm Rhys." He held out his hand to the other man.

The stranger sighed and adjusted himself in the seat. "I'm Tim." He shook the hand not looking in Rhys' direction, blank stare. "Ugh, this is the worst day of my life..." He muttered with another sigh.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My only beta was grammarly and english isn't my first lang, so feel free to point out any mistakes!
> 
> Also, I don't know when I'll be able to post ch 2... Hehe :)  
> Feedback is appreciated! So leave comments. I'd love to see your thoughts ;)


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